Caddyshack (1980)

July 25, 1980

'CADDYSHACK,' 'ANIMAL HOUSE' SPINOFF

By VINCENT CANBY

Published: July 25, 1980

''CADDYSHACK,'' the newest ''Animal House'' spinoff, is this summer's ''Meatballs,'' a movie that tears the lid off the apparently placid life at a WASPy country club to expose bigotry, ignorance, lust and a common tendency to cheat on the golf course.

The film is the first to be directed by Harold Ramis, who was one of the authors of ''Animal House,'' and who wrote this script with Douglas Kenney and Brian Doyle-Murray, who is a brother of Bill Murray, the star of ''Meatballs'' and one of the stars of ''Caddyshack.'' Do you follow me?

In addition to Mr. Murray, who plays the country club's slobbish, possibly retarded, assistant greenskeeper, the cast includes Michael O'Keefe, who is so fine in ''The Great Santini'' but who is almost invisible as the principal caddie in this movie; Ted Knight as the club's most starchy member; Chevy Chase as a playboy so nonchalant he seems not to be in the movie but just sort of visiting it, and the irrepressible Rodney Dangerfield as the club's nouveau riche boor, a most endearing loudmouth who is inclined to say such things as, ''This steak still has the marks where the jockey hit it.'' Among the pretty young women who get mixed up in the plot are Sarah Holcomb and Cindy Morgan.

''Caddyshack'' is a pleasantly loose-limbed sort of movie with some comic moments, most of them belonging to Mr. Dangerfield, who predates ''Animal House'' by a number of years. The movie might have been made for television except for the rough language and one gag (funny) involving a Baby Ruth candy bar. It's not as funny as ''Cheech and Chong's Next Movie,'' but it is less pushy than ''Meatballs.'' It is not as thickly stocked with outrageous moments as ''Animal House,'' yet it is far easier to take than ''Where the Buffalo Roam.''

Mr. Murray is funny mostly because he tries so hard. He reminds me of an usually clean-cut, buttoned-down type of suburban fellow who, after two or three stiff drinks, delights his pals with his uninhibited impressions of slobs and boors. You don't for a minute believe him - you are always aware of the distance between the performer and the performance, but you appreciate the effort and the intelligence behind it.

''Caddyshack'' opens today at Loews State 2 and other theaters.

Loose-Limbed Romp

CADDYSHACK, directed by Harold Ramis; written by Brian Doyle-Murray, Mr. Ramis and Douglas Kenney; director of photography, Stevan Larner; edited by William Carruth; music by Johnny Mandel; produced by Douglas Kenney; released by Warner Bros. At Loews State 2, Broadway and West 45th Street; New York Twin I, Second Avenue and 66th Street; 83d Street I, at Broadway; Waverly, Avenue of the Americas at Waverly Place and other theaters. Running time: 107 minutes. This film is rated R.